Philosophy of Mind and Cognitive Science

What are minds and what is their structure? How are the physical and the mental connected? What is the nature of perception and cognition, and how are they related? Philosophers of mind ask questions such as these. Since Jerry Fodor’s pioneering work in the foundations of cognitive science, Rutgers has been at the forefront of understanding the mind through an interdisciplinary approach, incorporating insights from disciplines such as psychology, linguistics, and computer science. Rutgers philosophers of mind cover an unusually large range of issues and approaches, such as: traditional metaphysics of mind (Barry Loewer), mental representation and computationalism (Frankie Egan), perception and imagination (Susanna Schellenberg), emergence and supervenience (Brian McLaughlin), cognition and its relation to language (Liz Camp and Paul Pietroski), and experimental philosophy and moral psychology (Stephen Stich).

Philosophers of mind at Rutgers benefit from contact and collaboration with other members of RuCCS (the Rutgers Centre for Cognitive Science), and from the vibrant New York area philosophy of mind community. Susanna Schellenberg runs a mind research group in which we discuss work in progress of members of the group and visitors.